Interlude 9:  Guilt and Consequences
by pbw
Summary: Charles Xavier, Moira MacTaggert, Erik Lehnsherr, Raven Darkholme, Hank McCoy


_A further story in the Interludes Universe_

_Nothing is mine._

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><p><span>Charles<span>

Charles felt complete and absolute guilt for what he did to Moira. He constantly justified it to himself that he _needed to do it_ for her sake. What if she was harshly interrogated by the CIA? How much could she face before she broke and told them where they were?

But really, that was the crux of his guilt. Charles mind wiped Moira more for his own selfish reasons rather than for her own. He had people to protect; people who depended on him. And he needed to make sure that no one knew where they were located. He hated sending her away. In truth, he considered Moira to be his equal. The boys needed him, but they did not fully understand what _he_ needed.

And so, he had sent bright, beautiful Moira MacTaggert away with her personality intact minus several key memories. He had sent her away with a kiss filled with regret.

The others would not stop giving him looks. They missed Moira. The calm, stable one who was able to talk anyone from whatever ledge (real or imagined) they found themselves on. They missed her warmth, her humor and her intelligence. Moira was their mother-figure if you got to the root of the problem.

Charles could not stand their voiceless accusations. He could no longer explain to them why he had done it. Why he felt the strong need to _protect_ them for the one person, one sister he could not. Charles spent many a lonely night aching for Erik, Moira and Raven.

Charles sighed and put his fingers to his temple and gently began easing away the bright memory of Moira MacTaggert from the three young men in the mansion.

He thought he was a highly ethical and moral man.

He was wrong.

So, terribly, terribly wrong.

Moira

Moira felt guilty for...something. But damned if she could remember what that _something_ was. She thought she had hurt someone very special to her. And hurt them- _him _- in some inexplicable way. But try as she might, Moira could not remember who she had hurt and why. If she could remember she would apologize immediately. But nothing came to her mind.

All she could remember was the sun, the ocean, some terrifying danger, but nothing else. Moira thought she could remember bright blue eyes and a calm demeanor framed in a frightfully intelligent face. She could feel heat rising in her face thinking about these too bright blue eyes, but did not know why she would possibly be embarrassed about.

So, Moira went about her life working in the CIA. But as time wore on, she became more and more dissatisfied about her work in the government agency. She felt that she needed to contribute something bigger and better to the world. The time to move on had come and Moira needed to leave.

As she sat in the coffee shop making plans, feeling the world open before her.

Moira did not notice the man sitting in the wheelchair staring intently at her with tears in his eyes.

Erik

Erik, naturally, felt the guiltiest and conflicted about the events that happened in Cuba. That was another person he couldn't save. He easily crushed a tin can on his way to that Moira woman's house. But as soon as he was within visual distance of her house, something pricked his subconscious. Something seemed off about the situation.

He stopped short when he saw her coming out of her house, hair pulled back, and carrying boxes. It was obvious that Moira was moving out of her house. But where? Moira saw Erik looking at her and smiled brightly at him and then went about her business as _if she did not recognize him at all._

Erik's stomach dipped as his world began spinning. What was happening? Shouldn't Moira have recognized him and tried to kill him? Did someone erase her memory? Who would have done such a thing?

Erik was so lost in thought that he did not hear the wheelchair rolled up beside him.

"I had to do it, you know," came the soft English accented voice.

Erik whipped to his left and saw Charles there looking at Moira busily emptying her house.

"Not only for her sake, but for our own as well," Charles continued still not looking up at Erik. "She deserves to be happy. Moira only remembers us vaguely and in fragments. Nothing to report anything to anyone about."

"We'll never be safe," Erik finally croaked out.

"No, we won't. But I've bought us a few years. And in those years who knows? Maybe we'll have amassed what we need to fight this war."

"So, you believe that the humans will be coming after us," Erik's voice turned hard.

"Yes. Humans and other mutants," Charles said. He could not meet Erik's eyes.

"You've changed," Erik finally said.

"I've had to evolve," came Charles' answer as he wheeled himself away.

Emma

Emma never thought that she would feel so guilty for something. Especially for what Sebastian did. She had no knowledge of what he had done to the countless number of men, women and children in that awful war. Had she known...would she have tried to stop him? Would she have tried to change his mind? Some dim knowledge surfaced in her mind.

No, she would not have stopped him. But she would not have participated either. Shakily, Emma knew that this was just as bad as participating with him. But this did not stop her from looking out for herself. So, what if she was perceived as the bad guy? The bad guy had to win every once in a while.

Raven/Mystique

Raven never should have left Charles' side. How could she leave the one person who believed so much in her? Who raised her? Who gave her practically everything she ever wanted in life?

She laughed bitterly thinking about Charles. The one thing she wanted from him, he could not give her. Mystique laughed again when she realized that Erik could not give her what she wanted either.

For someone who could change her appearance easily, Mystique did not have a clue to her own identity.

Hank

He never should have made that serum. There were no mirrors in his room and he avoided them whenever he was out and about in the Mansion...which, really, wasn't often. These days, Hank was either found in his lab or in his room. He rarely came out for anyone or anything. Oftentimes while in his lab, Hank would throw himself into what he was working on - a way to reverse his mutation.

The others were getting very worried about him.

But Hank would only growl at the others whenever the subject was brought up. And Charles...well, Charles he avoided most of all. He felt responsible for driving Raven away. Hank never believed Charles when he said that it was her choice.

It wasn't her choice...not really. If he hadn't pushed the serum on her, she might have stayed. So, no, Hank could _not_ look Charles Xavier in the face. It was his fault for driving her away.

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><p><em>Crud.<em>

_Oh, well._

_Reviews would be nice, but not entirely necessary._


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